Absence of safety measures at a demolition site led to the deaths of three sisters, all aged below 10, and an adult in Pagla of Narayanganj, yesterday.  

The tragedy occurred when a portion of the building being pulled down collapsed on them.

Another adult received serious injuries in the incident.

Locals blamed the building-owner and contractor involved in the work for their utter negligence.

The deceased are Lamia, 9, Laboni, 4, and Lima, 2, daughters of truck helper Saiful Islam; and Alamgir Hossain, 22, of Shariatpur. The injured is Shah Alam, 35.

Locals said a large chunk of a wall of a tin-roofed one-storey building fell on the five around 10:30am at New Model Shanti Nibash residential area in Pagla under Fatullah Police Station.

Saiful and his wife Masuma Begum, along with their daughters, had been living at a shanty adjacent to the residential area. Yesterday morning, the three sisters went out to play in an alley next to the building in question.

“I would never have let them go there if I knew about the demolition work,” said Masuma, alleging that neither the house-owner nor the contractor informed the neighbours prior to demolishing the building.

“I want justice,” a devastated Masuma said.

Salam Mia, a local, said the sisters were playing on the alley beside the building, completely unaware of the danger.

The two adults also happened to be passing through the area when suddenly a big piece of the building's wall collapsed on them all, leaving Lamia and Laboni dead on the spot. Lima and Alamgir succumbed on the way to the hospital.

Salam said the building was old and owned by one Chan Mia. It had been used as a godown in the past.

Although the demolition work had been going on since Wednesday, no safety measures, like barricades, were used around the building, he alleged.

Inspector Mujibur Rahman of Fatullah Model Police Station said five to six labourers were involved and he named one Ismail Hossain as the contractor at the site. 

The inspector further confirmed that there were no safety measures in place when the incident occurred. Chan Mia, Ismail and the labourers went into hiding soon after, he said.

Md Sharfuddin, additional superintendent of police in Narayanganj, said the bodies were sent to Narayanganj General (Victoria) Hospital morgue for autopsies.

Police are investigating the incident and working to nab the culprits, he said.

The injured, Shah Alam, has been admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital for treatment.